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GalatiansCourse Level: Advanced

Course Summary

This course is an in-depth study of Paul's letter to the Galatians. In this course students will learn about the location and ethnic makeup of the Galatian community, and they will learn about key Pauline terms such as "works of the law,"¯ "justification,"¯ and "faith in / of Christ,"¯ which will assist students as they interpret other Pauline letters. Galatians will also introduce students to one of the earliest conflicts in Christianity--the place of non-Jews or Gentiles in the Christian community. Moreover, this letter will inform students about the opponents of Paul, commonly called Judaizers, and the differences between the theology of the Jerusalem church and Paul himself. Study of this letter will help students understand many of today's theological differences between Protestants and Catholics that go back to the time of the Reformation, and study of this letter will help students better understand the conflicts between the Church and the Synagogue that started as early as the late first-century CE. Finally, this course will give students a glimpse of early Christian ethics and what it meant to live a virtuous life in the early Christian communities.